1 Lord of my love, to whom in vassalage The feudal formality that constrains the love relationship: hierarchy and vassalage.
Lord of my love, to whom I am bound in feudal service, You're the master of my love, and I'm your loyal vassal, i bow to you 'Vassalage' = feudal service, submission; the young man as lord, the speaker as vassal.
2 Thy merit hath my duty strongly knit;
Your worthiness has bound my duty securely, Your excellence has tied me to my duty, bound to you 'Knit' = tied, bound; merit creates obligation.
3 To thee I send this written embassage
To you I send this written formal message, So I'm sending you this letter as a formal statement, this poem is my formal duty 'Embassage' = diplomatic message, formal communication; the poem itself as message.
4 To witness duty, not to show my wit.
To testify to my devotion, not to demonstrate my cleverness, to prove my loyalty, not to show off how smart I am, not trying to impress you 'Witness' = testify to, bear evidence of; modesty about poetic skill.
5 Duty so great, which wit so poor as mine
My duty is so great that my meager ability My devotion is so huge that someone as lacking in wit as me i can't express how much i owe you
6 May make seem bare, in wanting words to show it;
Can only make my devotion appear empty and stripped, lacking words, can only make my love look bare and inadequate—I don't have the words, my words aren't enough 'Bare' = empty, inadequate; 'wanting' = lacking.
7 But that I hope some good conceit of thine
Except I hope that your generous interpretation But I'm counting on you to read generously between the lines— you'll understand what i mean 'Conceit' = thought, interpretation; the young man's generous reading.
8 In thy soul’s thought (all naked) will bestow it: The beloved's interpretation supplies meaning: the young man 'bestows' understanding on inadequate words.
Will graciously bestow meaning in your pure, unadorned thought, will put the real meaning into your honest heart, you see what i really feel 'All naked' = stripped bare, unadorned; the beloved's inner thought supplies meaning.
Volta The shift from presenting written duty as inadequate to awaiting fortune's transformation: 'Till whatsoever star that guides my moving, / Points on me graciously.' Timing and circumstance become crucial.
9 Till whatsoever star that guides my moving,
Until whatever star directs my fate and movement Until the star that controls my destiny till fortune changes 'Star' = fortune, astrological destiny; 'guides my moving' = directs my course.
10 Points on me graciously with fair aspect,
Looks upon me favorably with a kind regard, smiles at me with kindness and approval, shows me favor 'Aspect' = astrological appearance, planetary position; also 'favor, regard.'
Wordplay
- aspect = astrological position of a planet
- aspect = manner, demeanor, regard, look
- the pun conflates cosmic destiny with personal favor, suggesting they are one
11 And puts apparel on my tattered loving, Love as 'tattered' from circumstance, awaiting external transformation to become proper.
And dresses my love—worn thin by circumstance—in proper garments, and gives my worn-out, tattered love some proper clothing, makes my worn love look worthy 'Apparel' = clothing; 'tattered loving' = love worn thin by circumstances.
12 To show me worthy of thy sweet respect,
So I can appear worthy of your kind regard, so I can seem like I deserve your affection, making me worthy of you
13 Then may I dare to boast how I do love thee,
Then I will be able to boldly declare how much I love you, Then I can actually tell people how much I love you, then i can tell the world 'Boast' = declare proudly; currently forbidden by circumstance.
14 Till then, not show my head where thou mayst prove me.
Until then, I won't show myself where you might test and judge my worthiness. Until then, I'll stay hidden—I can't face your judgment yet. i'm not ready to be tested 'Prove' = test, judge; the speaker avoids public judgment until he's worthy.